Smoke-free medical students' meetings

Abstract

Medical students of the world have signalled their commitment to health promotion by prohibiting smoking at the semiannual general assembly meetings of the International Federation of Medical Students' Associations (IFMSA). Although initially adopted in 2000, the smoke-free bylaw took 5 years to come into force. This year finally saw compliance with the bylaw on March 1, 2005, at the IFMSA General Assembly in Antalya, Turkey, when medical students who wanted to smoke had to do so outside.On May 31, 2005, the focus of World No Tobacco Day was on the role of health-care professionals, and their capacity to help others give up their addiction. There is, however, a lack of consistency among those who admonish others for their reliance on tobacco, yet fail to adhere to their own cautions. Medical students and other health professionals must have credibility when engaging in health promotion. Their advocacy and action must be consistent to deliver a compelling argument for the major life change of permanent smoking cessation. This is especially so because doctors are consistently identified by the public as one of the most trusted and regarded professions.1MORI Social Research UnitDoctors top public opinion poll on trustworthy professions.http://www.mori.com/polls/2005/bma.shtmlGoogle ScholarDoctors' responsibility as community leaders and role-models should not be underestimated. IFMSA has taken the first step of ensuring that the leadership role of future physicians is no longer compromised.We declare that we have no conflict of interest. Medical students of the world have signalled their commitment to health promotion by prohibiting smoking at the semiannual general assembly meetings of the International Federation of Medical Students' Associations (IFMSA). Although initially adopted in 2000, the smoke-free bylaw took 5 years to come into force. This year finally saw compliance with the bylaw on March 1, 2005, at the IFMSA General Assembly in Antalya, Turkey, when medical students who wanted to smoke had to do so outside. On May 31, 2005, the focus of World No Tobacco Day was on the role of health-care professionals, and their capacity to help others give up their addiction. There is, however, a lack of consistency among those who admonish others for their reliance on tobacco, yet fail to adhere to their own cautions. Medical students and other health professionals must have credibility when engaging in health promotion. Their advocacy and action must be consistent to deliver a compelling argument for the major life change of permanent smoking cessation. This is especially so because doctors are consistently identified by the public as one of the most trusted and regarded professions.1MORI Social Research UnitDoctors top public opinion poll on trustworthy professions.http://www.mori.com/polls/2005/bma.shtmlGoogle Scholar Doctors' responsibility as community leaders and role-models should not be underestimated. IFMSA has taken the first step of ensuring that the leadership role of future physicians is no longer compromised. We declare that we have no conflict of interest.